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Egypt tourist boat latest: More survivors rescued as search intensifies for remaining passengers

Two Britons are still unaccounted for after a tourist yacht sank in the Red Sea

Alex Croft,Jabed Ahmed,Shweta Sharma
Wednesday 27 November 2024 04:52 GMT
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Rescuers help survivors of boat sunk off Red Sea coast as two Britons feared missing

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Four bodies have been recovered from the tourist yacht which was hit by a “huge wave” and sank off the Red Sea coast of Egypt on Monday.

But five more people were found alive today - two Belgian tourists, an Egyptian a Swiss national and a Finnish national - and rescue teams were still searching for seven missing people, the area’s governor said in a statement. This brings the total number of survivors to 33.

Two Britons were among the 16 people initially reported missing, according to Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi. It is unconfirmed whether the Brits were among the bodies recovered on Tuesday.

The rescue is being coordinated by the Egyptian military and the Red Sea Governate, with armed forces aircraft deployed to the scene.

The boat sank off the Egyptian coastal town of Marsa Alam with 31 tourists of various nationalities and 13 crew members on board.

It has not been confirmed what caused the four-deck motor yacht to capsize, but the Egyptian Meteorological Authority had warned about rough weather, advising against maritime activity for Sunday and Monday on the Red Sea.

Yacht was carrying 31 foreigners

Amr Hanafi, governor of the Red Sea region, said the yacht was carrying 44 people. It has capacity for 48 people, according to its website.

This included 31 foreign nationals from the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Poland, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, China, Slovakia, Spain and Ireland.

Alexander Butler26 November 2024 07:00

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